TODAY'S PROMISE

"We tell you this directly from the Lord:  We

who are still living when the Lord returns will not

meet him ahead of those who have died.  For

the Lord himself will come down from heaven

with a commanding shout, with the voice of the

archangel, and with the trumpet call of God.

First, the Christians who have died will rise from

their graves.  Then, together with them, we who

are still alive and remain on the earth will be

caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the

air.  Then we will be with the Lord forever.  So

encourage each other with these words."

(1 Thessalonians 4:15 - 18 NLT)

HANDLING WORRY

We are living in extremely difficult times.

Evil people are trying to regulate your life

and my life.  Thy have no regard for the 

outcome other than accomplishing their

evil plans which is destroying much for

the rest of us.

There is plenty to worry about.  More than 

most of us are capable of handling.  But how

am I to handle those things that are completely

out of my ability to control?

I want to look at how God wants us to handle

worry in our lives.

In the matter of worry God gives us instructions

to those who are his children.   His followers.

His servants.  And they are completely different

than those who are living for self and the Devil.

Those not living for God are the ones who really

have a lot to worry about, in this life and the 

one to come.

We have been browsing around in the book

of Philippians and find the following for those

who are "citizens of heaven";

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray

about everything.  Tell God what you need,

and thank him for all he has done.  Then you

will experience God's peace, which exceeds

anything we can understand.  His peace will

guard your hearts and minds as you live in

Christ Jesus."  

(Philippians 4:6, 7 NLT). 

That of course is God's instructions to us through

the apostle Paul.

Now consider his instructions through his 

servant of old, King David;

"Give your burdens to the LORD,

and he will take care of you.

He will not permit the godly to

slip and fall."  

(Psalms 55:22 NLT)

An even more important how Jesus Christ

tells us to handle worry.

"That is why I tell you not to worry about

everyday life - whether you have enough food

and drink, or enough clothes to wear.  Isn't

life more that food, and your body more than 

clothing?"  

(Matthew 6:25 NLT)

Jesus does continue at this point to tell us to
instead of worry, seek first his kingdom and
righteousness.

And last, God's instructions to us through
the apostle Peter;

"Give all your worries and cares to God,
for he cares about you."
(1 Peter 5:7 NLT)

Back to our text in Philippians.  Note
the utter simplicity God gives us regarding
worry.

Don't worry, instead
Pray about everything and
Tell God what you need, then
Thank him for all he had sone for you.

If we will do this, he will give us a peace
that completely exceeds our understanding
and that peace will guide us, if we will let it.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"For the angel of the LORD is a guard;

he surrounds and defends all who fear him."  

(Psalms 34:7 NLT)

I HAVE A NEW BODY ON ORDER

The last time I posted from the book of Philippians

we looked at those who claim to be Christians, but

their hearts and minds are set only on the things of

this world.  In short, their body has full control and

the apostle Paul tells us they are headed for destruction.

But the very next verses encourages us who have

our hearts and minds set on the things of God and

try our best to live for him.

"But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord

Jesus Christ lives.  And we are eagerly waiting

for him to return as our Savior.  He will take

our weak mortal bodies and change them into

glorious bodies like his own, using the same 

power with which he will bring everything

under his control."  

(Philippians 3:20, 21 NLT)

First, living in a world that is so uncertain and evil
I am encouraged that in truth this world is not my
final home.  I am a citizen of Heaven.  And when it
is all over I'll be with Jesus Christ for ever.

I can consider my self just as those saints of old
who;

"They agreed that they were foreigners
and nomads here on earth."
(Hebrews 11:13 NLT)
That's me brother.

Second, I can be looking forward to the return
of Jesus Christ to take over this old world;

"Look He comes with the clouds of heaven.
And everyone will see him -
even those who pierced him.
And all the nations of the world
will mourn for him.
Yes! Amen!"
(Revelation 1:7,8 NLT)

That thrills me.  We can look forward to that
great day with joy when the rest of the world
will be terrorized beyond description.

Thirdly, God is going to take this old weak
worn out body of mine and and change it to
be like the resurrected body of Christ.

You are just a kid yet so that might no mean
much to you.  But by the time you get as old
as my wife and I, that can mean everything
to you.

True I do not understand what that body will
be like.  But one time when some of those smart
religious leaders were arguing with Christ about
the resurrection he made this comment about
what our bodies will be like;

"And they will never die again.  In this respect 

they will be like angels.  They are children of 

God and children of the resurrection."  

(Luke 20:36 NLT)

PRAISE GOD.  I have something to be excited
about.  I have a new body coming.

The extra image.  Well, I just could not pass this one up.

TODAY'S QUOTE

"Over the past twenty-five years I have learned

that God cannot use a person who is not broken

and completely surrendered to Him." 

-Paul Y. Cho in

PRAYER: KEY TO REVIVAL

GOD STOMACH.

The apostle Paul here is continuing, not about those

who are pushing for the old Jewish law, but some who

apparently are "Christians" in the Church at Philippi.

"For I have told you often before, and I slay it again

with tears in my eyes that there are many whose 

conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross

of Christ.  They are headed for destruction.  Their

god is their appetite, they brag  about shameful things,

and they think only about this life here on earth." 

(Philippians 3:18,19 NLT)

The word "appetite" here is translated as;

belly, stomach, bodily desires, emotions

and body in other versions.  But you get

the idea.

In short, they were self-indulgent Christians.

They were not living for Christ, but only for

themselves.  They might even have had correct

doctrine.  But their life style was on of living

only for their life here on earth.

Even Jesus Christ himself said that a Christian

is to take up his cross daily.  The cross of course

was an instrument of execution.  In other words,

if I am a Christian I am to die to my self every

day and these people were not doing that.  That

is what makes them enemies of the cross of Christ.

Paul says these people are headed for destruction.

That is scary.  But we will continue latter in the 

next couple of verses that contain the hope of 

a true Christian.

I WOULD FLY AWAY AND REST

I do not know about you.  But I am getting really

tired of all the misinformation and lies that have 

been fed to the public the last few weeks.  It is 

becoming obvious that the "crises" is being fueled

and used in an effort to bring the whole world under

government control - no matter what country you 

live in - a world controlled by the government.

God's word told us these days were coming, and 

here they are, whether we like it or not.

But being so tired of it all the 55th Psalm made

a real impression on me today.  The Scriptures

quoted are from Psalm 55 in the NLT.

This is king David pleading with God when he

was in a whole lot of trouble by those who hated

him.  His troubles were not the same as yours

and mine, but we can learn where to go by them.

"Listen to my prayer, O God.

Do not ignore my cry for help!

Please listen and answer me,

for I am overwhelmed by my

troubles."  

(Verses 1,2)

And king David wanted out of it just like 

you and I would.

"Oh, that I had wings like a dove;

then I would fly away and rest!

I would fly far away

to the quiet of the wilderness.

How quickly I would escape -

far from this wild storm of hatred."

(Verses 6 - 8)

We know that in time David was delivered

out of these troubles and in the next to last

verse in this chapter he gives us the necessary

clue for the help we need.

"Give your burdens to the LORD,

and he will take care of you.

He will not permit the godly to

slip and fall."  

(Verse 22)

TODAY'S PROMISE

"Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God,

and keep the vows you made to the

most high.

Then call on me when you are in trouble,

and I will rescue you,

and you will give me glory."

(Psalms 50:14,15 NLT)

I'M NOT THERE YET

My life is not one of constant accomplishment and
success like yours is.  I have to admit that I often
fail to live as God would have me to and seem to
have few if any accomplishments.  In fact, I often
want to just go hide or disappear.  Or even simply
tell God I've had enough.

That is one reason that this comment made by
Erwin W. Lutzer in his book
Failure The Back Door to Success
makes such a impression on me.

"Bible records and church history reveal to us that

many of God's servants have at times handed God

their resignation." 

Well, at least I'm not the only one.  So, I will try
to take the example of the apostle Paul when
writing from a prison cell in Rome near the end
of his life.

"I don't mean to say that I have already

achieved these things or that I have already

reached perfection.  But I press on to possess

that perfection for which Christ Jesus first
possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters,
 I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one 
thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward 
to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end
of the race and receive the heavenly prize for 
which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling 
us."  (Philippians 3:12 - 14 NLT)  

TODAY'S QUOTE

"To many today, knowledge and information have

become equal to doing.

"This is why the Western church has become the 

world's greatest collector of knowledge and expertise.

And this is also whey we're so dependent today on 

consultants.  How many pastors spend far more time

meeting with church growth consultants, fund-raiser

and salesmen that seeking the face of God for His will,

plans and solutions?"  

- K.P. Yohannan in

The Road To Reality

TOO HEAVY TO WIN THE RACE

All my life I have been a "hot rodder" at heart.

I grew up in the 1940's and 50's.  That was back

when we took the fenders, hood and anything else

that was not needed off our old cars.

Why?

It was excess weight that would slow us down if

we were in a race - legal or other wise.  So, most

of my life my cars at least did not have extras on

them and all of my motorcycles have been stripped

down ready for a race.

Believe it or not, that is the attitude that God wants

us to have toward life.  The race of life that God

has set before us.  Consider;

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such 

a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, 

let us strip off every weight that slows us down,

 especially the sin that so easily trips us up. 

 And let us run with endurance the race God 

has set before us."

(Hebrews 12:1 NLT)

Or consider the apostle Paul and his attitude 

about keeping the Jewish law or the accumulating 

of worldly goods.

"I once thought these things were valuable,

but now I consider them worthless because

of what Christ has done.  Yes, everything else

is worthless when compared with the infinite

value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.  For

his sake I have discarded everything else, 

counting it all as garbage so that I could gain 

Christ and become one with him." 

(Philippians 3:7,8 NLT)

In another place Paul said;  

"So if we have enough food and clothing,

let us be content."  

(1 Timothy 6:8 NLT)

The more time, effort and expense we spend

in accumulating the things of the world, the

more weight we add to our lives slowing us

down in the race of life that really counts.  

That would be the reason that Jesus Christ

himself said;  

"Don't store up treasures here on earth,

where moths eat them and rust destroys them,

and where thieves break in and steal.  Store

your treasures in heaven, where moths and 

rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break

in and steal.  Wherever your treasure is, there

the desires of your heart will also be."  

(Matthew  6:19 - 21 NLT)

YOU WILL NEVER BE GOOD ENOUGH

As human beings we tend to be in constant competition

on every thing in life.  We work to have the best grades,

the best job, make the most money or even cook the

best meal.  You name it, there is a competition to qualify

for everything.

Unfortunately this seems to carry over even into the

spiritual realm.  You have heard it, "I'm not good 

enough to know God or to be a Christian, etc."  That's

right.  You never will be because you plain and simple

cannot.

You could keep every law on the books including the

"The ten commandments" and still go straight to the

Devils hell.  I think that is why I love this little gem

that the apostle Paul gives us in the book of Philippians.

"For we who worship by the Spirit of God

are the ones who are truly circumcised.

We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us.

We put no confidence in human effort,"  

(Philippians 3:3 NLT). 

Do you realize that one little verse has the total

essence of being a Christian and in a relationship

with God himself.

That one little verse says more than a large library

full of theological books.

1. "... we who worship by the Spirit of God ..."

Jesus Christ himself when talking to the

Samaritan woman at the well said;

"For God is Spirit,  so those who worship

him must worship in spirit and in truth." 

(John 4:24 NLT)

God is spirit.  He is not something hanging on 

the wall or something you can hold in your hand.

We have to lift up our spirit to God who is spirit.

2. "We rely on what Jesus Christ has done for us."

Jesus Christ died in your place and my place.

He became a sacrifice to God the Father for us.

All we have to do is turn to God, submit ourselves

to God and accept that sacrifice that Christ made

for us.

3. "We put no confidence in human effort."

We are told numbers of times in the Scriptures

that we are not saved by our working for it

It is a gift from God.  Here are a few of the 

places that we are told we are not saved

by works if you want to look them up.

Ephesians 2:8,9

Romans 3:28

2 Timothy 1:9

Yes, after we have accepted God's gift to us

we will want to serve Him out of gratitude.  But

that is not what saves us.

Again, only one verse.

"... he saved us, not because of the righteous

things we had done, but because of his 

mercy.  He washed away our sins, giving

us a new birth and new life through the 

Holy Spirit."  

(Titus 3:5 NLT)

TODAY'S PROMISE

"And now the prize awaits me - the crown of

righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous

judge, will give me on the day of his return.

And the prize is not just for me but for all who

eagerly look forward to his appearing."  

(2 Timothy 4:8 NLT)

REJOICE

"Whatever happens, my dear brothers and 

sisters, rejoice in the Lord.  I never get tired

of telling you these things, and I do it to 

safeguard your faith."  

(Philippians 3:1 NLT)

In my browsing around in the book of Philippians

I almost pasted over this verse because the same 

thought - rejoice - is again brought out in chapter

four and verse four.  Then a truth caught my attention;

rejoice "... to safeguard your faith."

I do not know what all benefits there are to rejoicing.

But we are told by the prophet Nehemiah;

"... for the joy of the LORD is your strength!"  

(Nehemiah 8:10 NLT)

However another fact occurred to me.  I was not

rejoicing, being glad, or happy in the Lord at the

time because;

I knew for a couple of days I was not living and

acting the way God wanted me to and my conscious 

was bothering me.

I had to conclude that if I am not rejoicing in the

Lord, something is wrong with me and I need to

straighten up.  That is a safeguard in it's self.

The Bible is full of the word rejoice or rejoicing.

It will vary from one version to another because

sometimes they use the word "rejoice / rejoicing"

or, "happy" or "glad" etc.  But in one version of 

the Bible in Paul's writings alone he uses the word

20 times.  An in the New Testament it is used 43

times, and in the Psalms it is used 54 times, so,

rejoicing must be important in God's sight.

"Always be joyful."  

(1 Thessalonians 5:16 NLT)

When I consider all that God has done for me through

the death of Jesus Christ in my place - how can I help

but rejoice - even if things are not going the way I want

at the time.

  

"So rejoice in the LORD and be glad, all you

who obey him!

Shout for joy, all you whose hearts

are pure."     

(Psalms 32:11 NLT)

"This is the day the LORD has made.

we will rejoice and be glad in it." 

(Psalms 118:24 NLT)